Bytedance is not owned or controlled by the Chinese government.
it's a private company,
60% of the company is owned by global institutional investors.
20% is owned by the founder,
and 20% owned by employees around the world.
The recent Congressional hearing put Tik Tok CEO in the hot seat,
as lawmakers grilled him over privacy issues,
data usage, and potential influence on users.
It's clear that Tik Tok is facing immense scrutiny from the U.S government.
The hearing in which saw Tik Tok CEO fielding questions
from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers
raised numerous concerns about the platform's data privacy practices,
its algorithm its potential to spread harmful content
as well as its, supposedly being a threat to the USA's National Security.
These are all accusations that could just as easily be leveled against
Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram
so why is Tik Tok being singled out.
in this video I'm going to go through the evidence
and reveal the real reason the U.S government want to ban Tik Tok.
Tik Tok, a Chinese APP that has taken the World by storm,
developed by the Chinese tech company bike dance,
It is a short form video platform
that has captured the heart and attention of millions around the world.
With it's easy to use interface and an Ever evolving range of viral challenges,
the APP has become a hub for creativity and self-expression.
Bytedance, the parent company of Tik Tok
was founded in 2012 by Chinese entrepreneur Zhang yiming,
and although Tik Tok is often referred to as a Chinese APP,
it's Global success has made it a truly International phenomenon.
Tik Tok's popularity has skyrocketed over the past few years
with over 2 billion downloads worldwide.
and hundreds of millions of active users.
Its success is particularly evident in the United States
where the APP has become a Mainstay for younger Generations.
As Tik Tok's popularity has grown in the United States,
so as the attention it's received from American Media and politicians.
This has led to an ongoing and heated debate about
whether or not Tik Tok should be banned in the United States.
With arguments ranging from it being a national security threat,
fears of data privacy violations to allegations of content censorship.
One of the primary concerns raised by American Media and politicians is
the potential for Tik Tok to share user data with the Chinese government.
Reports often highlight the apps Chinese parent Company Bytedance
and speculate on the possibility of data being transmitted to Beijing.
These concerns have been fueled by the perception that
Chinese tech companies are often closely linked to the Chinese government.
many U.S lawmakers, both Republicans and Democrats
have expressed concern over Tik Tok's potential National Security risks.
With a number of politicians suggesting an outright ban,
citing the need to protect American citizens and interests.
The portrayal of Tik Tok as a national security threat
is being met with mixed reactions from the public,
with some users and creators expressing concern over
their dated privacy and potential censorship.
others however see the issue as overblown,
and questioned the motivations behind the push to ban the APP.
Tik Tok are much more than just give me exposure.
it has it has actually allowed me to increase my income by 700%.
this extra income has allowed me to support to support myself,
build a studio and pay staff, and then this platform is taken away
then I'm not sure if I'll be able to continue to do that.
While concerns about data privacy and censorship and Tick Tock are legitimate,
it's crucial to understand
the broader political motivations driving the push to ban the APP.
Both Republicans and Democrats
have taken a hard stance against China in recent years,
as tensions between the two countries have escalated over a range of issues,
including trade, intellectual property and National Security.
By Framing the debate around National Security concerns,
they can rally public support for a ban,
while simultaneously exerting pressure on China.
This tough stance against China is a bipartisan issue
with both Republicans and Democrats seeking to demonstrate their commitment
to safeguarding the United States from perceived Chinese threats.
One of the key arguments of banning Tik Tok revolves around the APP
posing a national security threat,
however when we dig deeper into the facts
we find several pieces of evidence that contradict these claims,
let's examine some of the most campaign arguments that
debunk the national security threat narrative.
In September 2022, Vanessa Pappas the chief operating officer at Tik Tok
provided written testimony to the United States Senate committee.
She addressed concerns about where Tik Tok stores U.S user data,
stating that the data is stored in data centers in the United States
and Singapore, as well as cloud-based Services
provided by American Tech giants like Amazon, Google, and Microsoft.
As of now 100% of U.S user traffic is routed to the Oracle Cloud infrastructure
further ensuring that user data is not being sent to Beijing.
The senate committee also questioned Tik Tok
about any potential disclosure of U.S user data to the Chinese government.
Papa's firmly denied any such disclosure stating that,
they have not been asked for the data, have not provided it,
and would not do so if requested.
This testimony was given under oath further strengthening its credibility.
Michael Beckerman tik tok's head of public policy
also addressed concerns about content moderation
and censorship in a recent interview.
he emphasized that
content moderation decisions are made in the United States,
and the platform does not censor content on behalf of any government.
To further demonstrate tik tok's independence from China's government
he encouraged users to search for sensitive topics on the app
where they would find open and uncensored dialogue.
fFnally it's also worth noting that
tik tok's parent company bite dance has a diverse investor base,
with over 60% of the company owned by Western firms like BlackRock,
Fidelity, General Atlantic and Sequoia.
This fact counters the misconception that
Tik Tok is solely a Chinese government-controlled entity
and highlights the intertwined nature of American and Chinese business interests.
Furthermore tik tok's operations in the United States
further distance it from Chinese government's influence.
Tik-Tok has a U.S.-based team that works on content moderation
and various other aspects of the platform,
ensuring that decisions made for the U.S market
are not influenced by the Chinese government.
Now let's talk about the competitive landscape of social media,
specifically the fierce competition between Facebook and tik tok.
Facebook has long enjoyed Global dominance
but tik tok's rapid rise in user engagement
has posed a significant challenge to the social media giant.
This is what Jasmine Enberg principal analyst from Insider intelligence
had to say about the effect Tik Tok is having on meta, Facebook's parent company,
and YouTube who have recently introduced shorts
to try and grab back some market share from Tik Tok.
Well the US is an important market for tick tock
and billions of dollars are at stake here
so at Insider intelligence we estimate that
Tik Tok will rake in about seven billion dollars in the US alone,
and that's about half of its worldwide ad revenues.
Now a lot of tik tok's meteoric growth over the past couple of years
has also come at the expense of some us-based companies
including meta and YouTube,
so it's incredibly important
and there's a lot of factors at play here for
why this is happening.
This graph from visual capitalist illustrates Facebook's path to
Domination by 2020, mapping each country's most popular social network.
Facebook has a strong presence on almost every continent
except for Asia where countries like Russia and China
have their own primary social networks.
This overwhelming dominance is for many reasons,
something the U.S government would like to maintain and protect,
however Tik Tok has disrupted the social media landscape
with his Innovative format, user-friendly interface and highly engaging content.
This Chinese developed APP has become hugely popular
grabbing the attention of users and threatening Facebook's dominance.
Tik tok's engagement is nearly three times that of Instagram,
the average user spends 25 hours per month on Tik Tok
while Instagram sees less than 8 hours of monthly engagement per user,
which raises concerns for the US government
and Facebook shareholders alike.
Tik tok accomplishes this by having a highly engaging platform
that Fosters connections between creators and users,
something that many tech companies have struggled to achieve in recent years.
With tik tok's popularity showing no signs of slowing down
American companies are faced with the challenge of trying to
adjust their strategies to remain relevant,
and competitive in the global market.
As tick tock's popularity continues to rise
the U.S government faces mounting pressure to
protect American tech companies interests
and maintain their Global influence.
This has led to heated debates over the potential regulations
and restrictions on foreign social media platforms like Tik Tok.
The real reason the United States wants to ban Tik-Tok
lies in the fear of losing global social media dominance,
and the threat that Tik-Tok success poses to
American Tech giants like Facebook and Instagram.
Tik tok's exceptional growth and ability to Captivate users
has put American companies on edge
and the US government is eager to protect their interests.
The US have long been the epicenter of the social media world
with companies like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter dominating the market.
The emergence of a powerful rival like Tik Tok
which originates from China has disrupted the status quo
and fuels concerns over the potential loss of American influence
in the global social media landscape.
With American companies feeling the heat from tik tok's rapid Ascent
the U.S government has been quick to jump into action
using The Narrative of National Security threats
as a smoke screen to disguise their true intentions,
stifling competition, and maintaining control
over the global social media Market.
The Narrative of National Security threats as we've shown
is simply a facade to justify these underlying motives.
In conclusion, I encourage you to approach the Tik-Tok debate
with an open mind and a critical eye,
considering the intricate web of interconnected interests
and potential consequences of a ban.
As we move forward
it is crucial to engage in constructive dialogue
fostering understanding and cooperation between the two Nations.
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